The Milner York
| The Milner York | |
|---|---|
 The hotel in 2018 | |
 Interactive map of the The Milner York area | |
General information | |
| Type | Station hotel |
| Location | Station Road, York, England |
| Coordinates | 53°57′33″N 1°05′29″W / 53.9591°N 1.0914°W |
| Year built | 1878–1896 |
| Client | North East Railway Company |
| Design and construction | |
| Architects | William Peachey and Thomas Prosser |
| Designations | |
Listed Building – Grade II | |
Official name | Royal York Hotel and area railings attached at side and rear |
| Designated | 24 June 1983 |
| Reference no. | 1256559 |
The Milner York is a historic Grade II listed station hotel on Station Road, adjacent to York railway station in England. Built of yellow Scarborough brick, it is a five-storey building completed in 1878, a year after the present station opened.
History
[edit]First Royal Station Hotel – 1853
[edit]
The Station Hotel opened on 22 February 1853 as an addition to York old railway station, and was designed by the architect G. T. Andrews.[1][2] Queen Victoria visited the hotel the following year, in 1854, and it was renamed the Royal Station Hotel as a result.[3] The original hotel became redundant after the opening of the new station in June 1877 and was converted into offices.[1]
Second Royal Station Hotel – 1878
[edit]Early years
[edit]The second Royal Station Hotel opened on 20 May 1878.[1] Designed by William Peachey of the North Eastern Railway,[2] and built to complement the wider station complex planned by the company's architect Thomas Prosser,[4] the hotel formed an integral part of the new station. As the railway's flagship hotel, it was managed directly by the company.[5] It featured elegant, high-ceilinged banqueting rooms and 100 large bedrooms costing 14 shillings a night. The building contractors were Lucas Brothers.[6]
A 27-room west wing was added in 1896, nicknamed the "Klondyke" after the Klondike Gold Rush.
In 1923, ownership and management of the hotel transferred to the London and North Eastern Railway (LNER).
British Transport Hotels
[edit]
In 1948, Britain's railways were nationalised, and with them York's railway hotel. Initially, it formed part of the "Hotels Executive" of the British Transport Commission.[7] The British Transport Hotels brand was introduced in 1953.
In 1981, an annexe to the hotel, known as the Friars Garden Hotel, was opened in a building that formerly served as the North Eastern Railway's catering department.[8] This was the final investment under nationalised ownership. A typical turnover at the time was £1,225,000 in 1981.[9] The same source recorded 135 bedrooms in the main hotel and 23 in Friar's Garden, with 24 rooms not yet en-suite. The Ebor Restaurant had 52 covers; by 2013, this space was operating as The Tempus Restaurant.[10]
Privatisation
[edit]Under Margaret Thatcher's government, ancillary activities of the railways were privatised, including British Transport Hotels.[11] The sale was conducted by public tender, and the sale inventory dated October 1982 is held by the National Railway Museum in York.[12] In 1983, the hotel was sold to Batchshire Limited, a subsidiary of Sea Containers,[13] and renamed The Royal York Hotel. The building was Grade II listed the same year.[4]
2006–present
[edit]In 2006, the Principal Hayley Group sold The Royal York Hotel, along with five other hotels, to Active Asset Investment Management for £275 million, under a deal that allowed Principal Hayley to continue managing the hotels for 25 years.[14] Principal Hayley repurchased the six hotels in 2012 for £200 million, £75 million less than the price at which they had been sold.[15] The following year, in 2013, the Principal Hayley Group was sold to Starwood Capital.[16] The hotel was renovated and renamed The Principal York on 1 November 2016.[17]
Starwood Capital sold Principal Hayley to Fonciere des Regions in 2018,[18] and the new owners contracted with IHG Hotels & Resorts to manage the properties.[19] In October 2022, Glasgow-based RBH Management took over operations of the hotel.[20]
In March 2024, RBH announced their intention to rename the hotel The Milner York, for local war hero William Milner, the Second World War-era foreman of York station, killed on 29 April 1942 during German air raids known as the Baedeker Blitz, while attempting to retrieve first aid supplies in the station.[21] The hotel was re-launched as The Milner York on 16 October 2024.[22] Milner's 95-year-old daughter Brenda cut the ribbon at the hotel's official reopening ceremony.[23]
See also
[edit]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 Fawcett, Bill (2001). A History of North Eastern Railway Architecture: Volume 1: The Pioneers. North Eastern Railway Association. p. 56.
- 1 2 Denby, Elaine (2002). Grand Hotels: Reality and Illusion. Reaktion Books. p. 66. ISBN 978-1861891211. Retrieved 30 December 2012.
- ↑ "History of the Hotel". The Principal York. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- 1 2 Historic England. "Royal York Hotel and area railings attached at side and rear (Grade II) (1256559)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 10 September 2026.
- ↑ Fawcett, Bill (2003). A History of North Eastern Railway Architecture: Volume 2: A Mature Art.
- ↑ "Obituary: Charles Thomas Lucas 1820–1895". Minutes of the Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers. 124 (1896). Institution of Civil Engineers: 440. 1896. doi:10.1680/imotp.1896.19616. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
- ↑ An illustrated history of British Railway Hotels 1838–1983 by Oliver Carter, Silver Link Publishing, 1990, page 91
- ↑ An illustrated history of British Railway Hotels 1838–1983 by Oliver Carter, Silver Link Publishing, 1990, page 122.
- ↑ Preliminary Particulars.... Royal Station Hotel....York, 1982, held in the National Railway Museum York Search Engine archive item 2003–8849 Retrieved 19 October 2013.
- ↑ "The Royal York Hotel website". Retrieved 3 December 2015.
- ↑ "Great Hotel Robbery". The Spectator. 26 March 1983. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
- ↑ Inventory, National Railway Museum archive no. 2003 9152
- ↑ An illustrated history of British Railway Hotels 1838–1983 by Oliver Carter, Silver Link Publishing, 1990, page 124.
- ↑ "Principal Hayley takes back Palace hotel". TheBusinessDesk.com. 11 January 2012. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ↑ "Principal Hayley buys back Palace Hotel as part of £200m deal". Manchester Evening News. 10 January 2012. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ↑ "New American owners for Royal York Hotel". York Press. 1 March 2013. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ↑ "Modern Hotel interior Design | Hotel Interiors UK | The Royal York Hotel". Goddard Littlefair. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
- ↑ Anand, Dev (2 April 2018). "Starwood strikes £750m Principal Hayley Sale to Fonciere des Regions". Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ↑ "Principal Hotels to be rebranded and managed by IHG". Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ↑ "The Principal York to be rebranded following RBH takeover". 7 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ↑ "Top York hotel to be renamed in honour of war hero". YorkMix. 5 March 2024. Retrieved 11 March 2024.
- ↑ "'So proud of Uncle Billy' – York family's joy as hotel renamed after war hero". York Press. 13 October 2024. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- ↑ Gordon, Maxine (16 October 2024). "'You don't have a dad anymore' – Brenda, 95, joyful as hotel honours hero dad". York Press. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
External links
[edit]
